David Datro Fofana has been officially signed by Chelsea ahead of the January transfer window.
On January 1, 2023, the 20-year-old Molde striker will join the Blues, while Andrey Santos, an 18-year-old midfielder from Vasco da Gama, is anticipated to follow soon after.
According to a report published on Wednesday, the Premier League team plans to spend close to £8 million on the Ivorian striker.
To bolster their offensive ranks, the Blues have reached an agreement with the Norwegian team for star forward Fofana, who has been on their radar for some time.
And on Wednesday night, the Blues published the following statement on their website: “Chelsea FC has signed a pre-agreement with Molde FK for the sale of David Datro Fofana.”
With 15 goals in 24 appearances, Fofana was a major contributor as Molde won the Norwegian Eliteserien championship by 18 points this season.
He debuted for the Ivory Coast earlier this year and has played for Molde in the Europa League.
Given that Chelsea has lost Armando Broja to a season-ending injury and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang is not having the best of seasons, Fofana might soon find a spot in the team.
Armando Broja suffered an injury during a friendly match against Aston Villa that has forced him to miss the rest of the season.
In the match against Bournemouth, Potter, who is still not convince about Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, decided to use Kai Havertz as the center forward. During the game, the German scored one goal and assisted in another. With the arrival of Fofana, Potter will have more alternatives.
With just 19 goals in 15 games, Chelsea has the fewest goals scored among the teams in the top half of the Premier League table.
Since his summer transfer from Barcelona, Pierre Emerick-Aubameyang has only started four Premier League games and scored three goals in all.
Thomas Tuchel recruited the 33-year-old to the team following his problematic tenure at Arsenal less than a year ago.
Fofana, though, is a well-known longtime supporter of Chelsea and is just one more name in Molde’s already excellent list of alumni.
Graham Potter has made a commitment to bringing in up-and-coming talent, such as Fofana, who hasn’t yet establish themselves on the grandest stage but will be given enough playing time under the former Brighton manager.
The Manchester City standout Erling Haaland burst into the limelight after playing for the Norwegian top-flight champions, and Fofana is the most recent striker to make a name for themselves with Molde.
As a result, he is only the second offensive acquisition Potter has made this season. Christopher Nkunku, who joined the Blues at the end of the season from RB Leipzig, was a statement acquisition for the Chelsea manager.
